Edward Theuns wins after thrilling battle between peloton and breakaway riders in Bredene Koksijde Classic, Eekhoff finishes third

After Nokere Koerse, where Nils Eekhoff sprinted to victory after his serious crash, and the Grand Prix de Denain, where top talent Matthew Brennan triumphed impressively in a small group, it was time for the next one-day race: the Bredene Koksijde Classic. Despite Milan-Sanremo, Belgium had several strong sprinters at the start, including Dylan Groenewegen, Milan Fretin, and Luca Mozzato.

These men saw six riders attack early in the race. The leaders, including three Dutch VolkerWessels Cycling Team riders, quickly built up a lead of more than two minutes. That lead seemed to grow for a moment until the wind picked up in the peloton, and things got very hectic.

The pace picked up, and the peloton broke into pieces. The first part quickly caught the leaders, and the second part caught up with 150 kilometers to go. With 130 kilometers to go, the hilly zone, with the Kemmelberg being the cruelest part, came into sight. The pace picked up again considerably, eventually costing Fabio Jakobsen the lead. The Dutch rider abandoned the race not much later.

The peloton formed a single line again, forcing several riders behind the pack to drop back. Eight riders managed to break away from the peloton as they approached the second ascent of the Kemmelberg. Many riders realized they had missed their chance and launched a counterattack, creating several smaller groups. The chasing group, with Eekhoff, Florian Vermeersch, Edward Theuns, and Alec Segaert among the best-known names, stayed about half a minute behind the leading group.

Nevertheless, it proved difficult to get closer to the leading group. The cooperation in the leading group remained strong for a long time, but with 60 kilometers to go, the chasing group managed to catch up with the leaders, so the first group now consisted of fifteen riders. With De Moeren in sight, the pace in the peloton also picked up, leaving the leading group with only a minute's advantage over the peloton with 55 kilometers to go.

However, this proved futile for the peloton. With 40 kilometers to go, the peloton was still a minute behind the leading group, while the pace in the depleted peloton remained high. With 20 kilometers to go, the lead remained at around 40 seconds, and tension increased in both the leading group and the peloton.

With ten kilometers to go, the breakaway riders still had a half-minute lead, which was the signal for Tudor's men to take the lead. In the final kilometers, the escapees seemed to be caught, but miraculously, the breakaway riders remained ahead. The peloton caught up in the last few hundred meters, but it was too late for them to compete for the victory. In the sprint, the Belgian Theuns turned out to be the strongest. Eekhoff finished third!